In Sunday's Washington Post, E.J. Dionne offers some sensible explanations for the country's changing religious demographic, as discussed in Jon Meachem's controversial Newsweek piece, "The End of Christian America." Dionne finds the developments "neither alarming nor surprising" thanks to the inevitabilities of immigration and the growth of those comfortable identifying themselves in secular terms. From my perspective, his piece is even more important for what he says are the ramifications for Christianity…
In Sunday's Washington Post, E.J. Dionne offers some sensible explanations for the country's changing religious demographic, as discussed in Jon Meachem's controversial Newsweek piece, "The End of Christian America." Dionne finds the developments "neither alarming nor surprising" thanks to the inevitabilities of immigration and the growth of those comfortable identifying themselves in secular terms. From my perspective, his piece is even more important for what he says are the ramifications for Christianity.
[T]he United States has gone through many periods in which religious enthusiasm and affiliation waned, only to be renewed in subsequent revivals. Christianity is a rather durable faith. Many believers would ascribe this to the power of its truth claims, but its resilience also speaks to the adaptability of its core message.
…[Y]es, something is changing, and that change will strengthen rather than weaken the Christian church over the long run. For nearly a quarter-century, Christianity in the United States has been defined to a large degree by the voices and the ideas of a very conservative evangelical strain that, over time, became highly politicized and closely allied with a single political party.
…[I]n doing so, they narrowed the Christian message.
You can read my take on this issue here. Even prior to Meachem's piece, BJC Director Brent Walker offered his thoughts on the topic recently here.
